Jeep Of A Different Color

MANILA — Officially they are known as Public Utility Vehicles, but only government statisticians ever call them that.

Everyone else knows them simply as jeepneys -- the most practical, economical and colorful means of transportation in the Philippines.

The diesel-belching, graffiti-covered vehicles are the evolutionary mutants of the reliable old Willys jeeps left behind by victorious American soldiers after World War II.

Today, only the front grilles of most jeepneys resemble those old World War II jeeps. The bodies have been elongated, covered and reinforced to accommodate two long, skinny benches that seat from 10 to 15 passengers uncomfortably.

The olive green paint jobs and uniform simplicity of the old army jeeps have been replaced by the Filipino penchant for garish individuality. There seems to be some sort of unofficial competition to have the most horse or rooster hood ornaments. Drivers try to outdo one another in wild splashes of color, displays of decals -- even the number of electric candles surrounding their ever-present dashboard altars.

In Manila alone, there were 31,235 jeepneys registered at the end of 1985. They operate on 744 different routes and cover 330 miles of roadway in the capital.

A Ministry of Transport study in 1985 showed that jeepneys carry 77 percent of Metro Manila`s 11 million daily passengers. They are more vital to the operation of the city than its cars, buses, taxis or elevated rapid transit lines.

One reason is the cheap cost and ready convenience of jeepneys. A ride costs less than 1 Peso (5 cents), and jeepneys will swerve across four lanes of traffic to stop for any passenger anywhere.

More than a dozen companies manufacture jeepneys across the Philippines, but the most popular models are produced by Sarao Motors in Las Pinas, just south of Manila, where 60 to 70 are made each month.

A fully hand-painted, ready-to-run Sarao jeepney sells for about 140,000 Pesos (roughly $7,000) and an unpainted version without an engine costs about 115,000 Pesos ($5,200). Customers dictate what their paint jobs and passenger compartments will look like, but everyone gets the same basic body design and seats stuffed with shredded coconut husks.

``Roughly for every seven we make, three will be fully painted and ready to go and four will just be shells,`` says sales manager Bert Virata, who has been with Sarao for 22 years.

``It all depends on what the customer wants. We like to give them what they want. It doesn`t matter to us.``